<TITLE>10. Par 36-39</TITLE>L-36 Now, you say, "Some people are just religious." They just quit stealing, quit lying. That's--that's not a Christian, that's just people pretending. There's always three classes of people everywhere: that's believers, make-believers, and unbelievers. You have them in every group. They're--they're always there. So people just... But profession: come up and say, "Well, I professed religion a long time ago." Miserable. See?
The thing you want to do is die to yourself, and then be buried in Christ, and raised with Him in His resurrection, and set now in heavenly places. See? Then your unbelief passes away.
How can the Spirit of God dwell in you, and deny the Word, when the Spirit of God wrote the Word? See, you can't do it. If you deny the Word, there's something in you tells you it's not so. Then it's unbelief. You're still in sin. Look at those priests and Pharisees, how religious they were. Holy men, as we'd call it today, and Jesus said, "You're of your father, the devil, and his works you do." What? Doubting the Word. You've kept your traditions, and made the commandments of God of none effect. Oh!

L-37 If He was here tonight, it would be the same thing. Our traditions has made the Word of God without any effect on the people. We've got to get back to that Word, back to It.
Excuse me, my colored friends. (I preach to them everywhere.) But an old sister gave a testimony not long ago in one--a meeting, said, "I's wants to make a testimony."
"All right, sister. Go ahead."
She said, "I want to say this. I hain't what ought to be, and I hain't what I want to be. But there's one thing I's sure. I hain't what I used to be." So I think that's a good idea. See? "I--I--I ain't down there no more. And I'm not as good as I want to be, and not as good as I ought to be. But I'm one thing sure: I'm not down there any more." That's a good philosophy. Yes, sir. I--I'm not what I used to be. That's right.
Now, what would we look for in Christ then? Now, if He's the same yesterday, today, and forever, we'll have to find out what He was yesterday to know what He is today. Is that right? For... I may have said in these chopped-up words that He is--He is the same. The Bible said that, and I'm trying to tell you the infinite God cannot change His way. He has to remain the same. Therefore, what He was...

L-38 Now, that was in the days of Paul, writing the book of Hebrews here (We believe it to be Paul.), and He was telling those Hebrews that Jesus Christ was the same yesterday. Now, we know that Jesus Christ was the One Who--Who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt. We all believe that. The Pillar of Fire, It was Christ. Certainly It was. The Bible said in Hebrews 11 here, I believe, that Moses esteemed the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt. See? He followed Christ. And anyone knows that that Pillar of Fire, Light, that took Israel through the wilderness was the Angel of the Covenant, which was Christ.
If you'll understand, He was... That was God above us. And then, when He became flesh and dwelled among us, God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, and now He's in the church (See, see?), same yesterday, today, and forever. See? Now, notice what He was yesterday. We would see Jesus. Now, if we saw Him in the same way He was then...

L-39 Now, let's take... We're reading out of Saint John, and Saint John the 1st chapter here said, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh and dwelled among us." Then what is it? The Word. If we found Christ as He was yesterday, He would be the Word of God, because in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Now, He would be the Word of God.


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